POSTER ART
The posters were a crucial way to get the word out to the hip community about upcoming events. Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart remembers that “One of the great things about San Francisco in the '60s was walking down the street, and looking up and seeing these amazing posters by Stanley Mouse, Rick Griffin, Alton Kelley, Wes Wilson, Victor Moscoso and David Singer. […] There were no [commercial] radio spots, no newspaper ads. We spread the word by posters.” An important factor here is that the posters were produced from within the subculture; none of the poster artists were such by trade, but were simply creative people with some visual talent who were connected to the community in various ways. As such, the posters were a direct expression of community ideas and spirit, which made them instantly identifiable. In Hart's words, “The posters looked like what we were playing. They were an open call to come and have fun, which is what we were all about anyway. The posters didn't just announce the concerts, they resonated with the styles of the times and described visually what the Grateful Dead, Big Brother, Quicksilver and the Airplane were doing at the Fillmore and the Avalon the following nights.” 6